Uncommon
Average 2.2 in. long
On the wing June-July
The clubtail of this species is only slightly narrower than the thorax. Thin yellow stripes run the length of the abdomen, with small, deformed yellow spots on the clubtail. Two thick yellow thoracic stripes bend out at the top, widen as they lower into the shoulder. Eyes are yellow-grey, face is a bright yellow. Wings of both sexes are clear, legs are black. There is no black crossline on the face. The farther north you move, the more yellow that appears. At their southern boundary, Midland Clubtails are almost entirely black. Females have a single, yellow pointed horn between their eyes.
This species is considered to be among the strongest fliers of all the dragonflies. This allows them to prey upon other dragonflies in mid-air.
This species’ nymphs are lurkers.
This species often mates in the air over open water, males patrolling sections of their preferred habitat—faster-flowing, large streams, or the shallows of large lakes. Prefers clear water with waves.
Females oviposit by submerging and washing their bodies (not wings) in the water, or by catching waves and using them to splash the eggs off of their abdomen.
There are two known subspecies of this dragonfly, delineated by slight genetic divergence and physical characteristics: Gomphus fraternus fraternus and Gomphus fraternus manitobus. Both are present in the Cowling Arboretum, but for the purposes of field identification, we can consider the two subspecies to be the same.